ON THE ICE COLUMN

St. Cloud State Coach Craig Dahl said it should be a “whale of a series.” University of Minnesota Coach Doug Woog said it could be a “dandy.”

Any way you look at it, the NCAA tournament quarterfinal series between Maine and Wisconsin will be an intriguing one according to coaches of four teams that have played both teams this season.

“It is a real interesting match-up,” said Woog. “I don’t know how to pick it. The difference might be that Wisconsin has more seasoned forwards, more four-year players. Maine is younger but might have more zip at times. It may come down to who is more consistent and who makes the big plays.”

Woog said he feels both teams have solid defensemen and quality goaltending.

Woog said the Bears must “make sure one Wisconsin goal doesn’t lead to another one (soon afterward). They’ve got to control the momentum because they’re on the road. The lower the score, the better it is for Maine.”

He said Wisconsin is going to have to “keep Maine’s young rabbits (forwards) from jumping all over the garden. They’re pretty quick. And Maine has pretty good special teams.”

Denver Coach Ralph Backstrom, who recently resigned his post, said, “it wouldn’t surprise me to see the series go to three games. Both teams are very quick and they both have good power plays. They won’t want to take too many penalties. Wisconsin plays quite well at home. There will be 8,600 people there, all dressed in red, and the home ice advantage really comes into play.

“Maine is going to have to be prepared to be mentally tough, they’ll have to be oblivious to what is going on in the crowd,” said Backstrom. “It’ll certainly be a high-tempo series and it will probably boil down to goaltending.”

Dahl said he gives the edge to Wisconsin “simply because they’re playing at home.

“Wisconsin has very good depth in all areas with the exception of in goal,” said Dahl. “Their depth certainly matches Maine’s. If they (Wisconsin) are suspect, it would be in the goal. (Duane) Derksen is okay. He isn’t great, he isn’t bad. He can give up a soft goal or two.

“Wisconsin played good team defense in the WCHA Final Four,” continued Dahl. “They didn’t give up a lot of shots and hardly gave up any second or third shots. They’ve got some scoring potential and they are very physical. It should be a good series. Maine is really disciplined.”

BC Coach Len Ceglarski said, “Neither team gives up a lot of goals. If each team can hold down the other two teams’ top two lines, they will have close games and anything can happen.” – – –

University of Maine senior right wing-center and tri-captain Guy Perron, who suffered a fractured and dislocated left wrist in a 4-3 loss to Alaska-Anchorage on Jan. 6, has been given the green light to play in this weekend’s series against Wisconsin.

However, Maine Coach Shawn Walsh intends to wait until mid-week to make a decision on Perron, who had 13 goals and 13 assists in 19 games prior to his injury.

“If he shows he can play well defensively in practice this week, he’ll play this weekend,” said Walsh. “I’m just glad he’s got the opportunity to play.”

“The wrist feels pretty good,” said Perron, who had a protective playing cast put on it Monday and skated for 15 minutes later in the day. “My legs felt pretty good but my wind will be a factor. After skating today, I was winded pretty badly. Going through a two-hour practice on Tuesday will be a challenge.

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to get my wind back,” added Perron, the school’s seventh-leading all-time career point-getter with 146 on 62 goals and 84 assists in 134 games. “I’m going to do the best I can. If I’m ready, I’m ready. But if I can’t do the job, it’s better for somebody who has played the last two months to be in there.”

Perron has been skating for a week and a half and would be used on the fourth line if he is ready.

“I don’t expect to play as well as I was before I got hurt,” said Perron. “But I’d like to try to help the team if I can.”